Introduction
Naga tribes are distributed mainly in Manipur and Nagaland states in northeast India. They are also found mainly in Sagaing region, Kachin state in Myanmar.The word 'Naga' was given by the Burmese and derived from the Burmese word “Na-ka” meaning people with pierced earlobes (Na means Ear, Ka means hole).
There are many Naga tribes but not all of them have the same origin. There are basically two groups of Nagas which are the North Naga and the South Naga. In this article we are going to talk about the origin of South Naga and their sub-tribes.
Homeland
The origin of Southern Naga is supported only by folk-tales and folk-songs as there are no written records handed down. All the different Southern Naga tribes could trace their original homeland to different places in western Myanmar especially along Chindwin river basin. Chindwin river is one of the tributaries to the main river in Myanmar which is Irrawaddy aka Ayeryarwady River.
Migration to North East India
The Southern Naga migrated to the Naga hills instead of staying along the Chindwin River basin due to the aftermath of the Mongol invasion of Myanmar (1277-1287 AD).The Northwestern Tai people coming from Yunnan of China expanded their territory into north-western Myanmar and replaced much of the earlier inhabitants of the Chindwin River basin who are the South Naga and Chin.
Mao Naga spoke of an origin whereby they walked up the Kriiborii river from Chindwin river basin until they reached the source of the river in Manipur. The exact place in Chindwin river basin from where they migrated was called Samsok which is Thaungdut in Myanmar.
Thaungdut is a village of the ancient capital of Southern Naga which is Homalin which lies on the banks of the Chindwin River.
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| Google map of Thaungdut in Homalin |
They finally settled in a place and named it Makhel also spelled as Meikhel which means 'secret place'. This gives another clue that they needed a secret place to hide from invaders.
The location of Makhel is traced to present-date Senapati district in Manipur. From Manipur, they migrated northwards mainly towards southern Nagaland state.
The location of Makhel is traced to present-date Senapati district in Manipur. From Manipur, they migrated northwards mainly towards southern Nagaland state.
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| Makhel (red) |
They never lived near the coast but a few traders would occasionally travel down to the coast of southern Myanmar to gather conch shells as ornaments to bring back to the Chindwin river basin. Conch shells have been used as ornaments in Nepal, Tibet, India and Burma for more than 4000 years.
Homeland in China
Where did the Southern Naga come from before they reach the Chindwin river valley? The Mao Naga claimed that their ancestors escaped from the Qin emperor (221-206 BC) when he forced his subjects to build the Great Wall of China.
There is a famous Chinese true story of Meng Jiang Nu (åŸå§œå¥³) and the web-link can be found in the 'sources section' in this article. Many people would have tried to escape building the Great Wall of China during Qin dynasty which extended from Gansu province in the west to the border of North Korea in the east.
There is a famous Chinese true story of Meng Jiang Nu (åŸå§œå¥³) and the web-link can be found in the 'sources section' in this article. Many people would have tried to escape building the Great Wall of China during Qin dynasty which extended from Gansu province in the west to the border of North Korea in the east.
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| Meng Jiang Nu at Great Wall of China |
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| Migration path in blue |
Southern Naga sub-groups
Most of the Southern Naga live in Manipur and southern Nagaland. They can be grouped into five branches which are- Ao-Yimchungru: Ao, Lotha, Sangtam, Makuri, Chirr, Para
- Angami: Angami, Poumai, Sema aka Sumi, Rengma, Mao, Pochuri
- Zeliangrong: Zeme, Liangmei, Rongmei, Maram
- Tangkhul-Maring: Tangkhul, Maring, Meithei
- Northwestern Chin: Anal, Chiru, Aimol, Monsang, Lamkang, Chothe, Kom, Moyon
The Northwestern Chin came from Khampat while the rest came from Homalin. Both Khampat and Homalin lies in the Chindwin River basin. However, the Northwestern Chin prefer to be identified as the Naga instead.
Origin of Meitei
There are ethnic and cultural relationship between the Meitei and Tangkhul.Both Tangkhul-Meitei originated from Khangkhui cave in Manipur but there was a migration of the Meitei (younger brother of the Tangkhul) to the Imphal valley in central Manipur.
The tradition of the Lai Haraoba festival is the living proof of the ancient bond between the Meitei and Tangkhul. At Hundung village in Ukhrul district where the Tangkhul brother used to lit light to be seen by their Meitei brother in the valley is still preserved today.
The Meitei became the largest ethnic group in Manipur due to the fertile land in the Imphal valley which is better than the Manipur hills.
When India got its independence from Britain in 1947, The Naga tribes also declared its own independence from India and called it Nagalim. However, India doesn’t recognize this unilateral declaration.
Nagalim means 'Greater Nagaland' which includes Manipur, Nagaland and their Sagaing homeland in Myanmar. Refer to map below.
Due to the common origin of Southern Naga and Chin-Mizo, their languages are very similar. The video below shows the similarities of the Chin-Mizo and Southern Naga languages giving one example of the word 'heart'.
British colonization
The Naga tribes were independent of foreign country control before the British came. The British conquered most of Naga hills by 1881 AD after many years of fighting and administered the territory under British India. The British also colonized Myanmar earlier in 1824 AD.
When India got its independence from Britain in 1947, The Naga tribes also declared its own independence from India and called it Nagalim. However, India doesn’t recognize this unilateral declaration.
Nagalim means 'Greater Nagaland' which includes Manipur, Nagaland and their Sagaing homeland in Myanmar. Refer to map below.
Naga face racial discrimination in India and are sometimes called 'Chinkis' (a derogatory slang for Chinese) by the ethnic Indo-Aryan people. Watch the video below.
Closest ethnic relatives
The closest relatives to the Southern Naga are the Chin-Mizo people based on language classification (according to linguists), folk-tales and close geographical distribution. They are called Mizo in Northeast India and Chin in Myanmar.Due to the common origin of Southern Naga and Chin-Mizo, their languages are very similar. The video below shows the similarities of the Chin-Mizo and Southern Naga languages giving one example of the word 'heart'.
The detailed origin of the Chin-Mizo will be written in a separate article.
Conclusion
From their oral history, their native language and the history of ethnic minority groups in China, we may conclude that Southern Naga hailed from mainland China who migrated to Myanmar along the rivers and corridors.
They lived for generations in Chindwin valley but they were driven out to the western hills in Myanmar and eastern hills in North East India by more advanced races in warfare i.e. the Northwestern Tai army.
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| Tangkhul |
They lived for generations in Chindwin valley but they were driven out to the western hills in Myanmar and eastern hills in North East India by more advanced races in warfare i.e. the Northwestern Tai army.
Refer to 'Ethnic origin of Tai in Myanmar' article in this blog for the invasion of ethnic Tai into Chindwin River.
http://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2019/09/ethnic-origin-of-north-naga.html
Main ethnicities in North East India
http://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2018/03/main-ethnicities-in-north-east-india.html
Origin of Sino-Tibetan tribes
http://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2018/08/origin-of-sino-tibetan-tribes.html
Ethnic origin of Chin-Mizo
http://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2020/05/ethnic-origin-of-chin.html
Related links
Ethnic origin of North Nagahttp://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2019/09/ethnic-origin-of-north-naga.html
Main ethnicities in North East India
http://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2018/03/main-ethnicities-in-north-east-india.html
Origin of Sino-Tibetan tribes
http://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2018/08/origin-of-sino-tibetan-tribes.html
Ethnic origin of Chin-Mizo
http://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2020/05/ethnic-origin-of-chin.html
Sources
- R. R. Shimray (1985): Origin and Culture of Nagas, New Delhi
- The Myths of Naga Origin By:- R.B. Thohe Pou
- Story of conch shells: https://sevenseasmedia.org/white-conch-of-chank-shells-in-naga-tribal-cultures/
- Tragedy of Chinese people in building the Great Wall of China: https://www.travelchinaguide.com/china_great_wall/culture/mengjiangnu.htm
- In search of Chin identity. A study in religion, politics and ethnic identify in Burma. 2003. Author: Lian H.Sakhong.
- Classification of Sino-Tibetan languages by Robert Shafer, Blench and Post
- Hsiu, Andrew. 2018. Linking the Sino-Tibetan fallen leaves.
- Cultural relation among the ethnic groups of Manipur. (origin of Meithei)https://www.thesangaiexpress.com/Encyc/2019/6/27/
- Local Deity Renews Age Old Tangkhul-Meitei Relation. http://kanglaonline.com/2011/05/local-deity-renews-age-old-tangkhulmeitei-relation/
Last updated: 11 Sept 2022
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I, on behalf of all Naga tribal people, thank the blogger for taking the time and consideration to write this enlightening article on the origin of Naga people supported by maps and informative links, especially the 'Tragedy of Chinese People in Building the Great Wall of China' (It verifies the story of "Escape from China" that Naga people often hear in Nagaland.). As the origin of the Nagas is shrouded in unrecorded "mystery" being supported only by oral folklore and legends, I believe this article will throw light in unravelling the truth of NAGA blood.
ReplyDeleteThere are basically two main origin theories of Naga. One theory is that they came from China, the other is that they came from Borneo but the Borneo origin raises more contradictions than this China theory so I chose only the most probable and most logical.
DeleteThere is nothing political about the articles in this blog and the objective is to throw some light into the most obscure of ethnic origins.
I would like to know who we really are. The word Naga was coined by foreigners. I am sure our forefathers never saw ourselves as Naga. There maybe a name used to identify us but I guess we'll never know
ReplyDeleteEach Naga tribe call themselves by their tribe names such as Angami, Mao etc and there's no internal group name until the Burmese call your group as Naga for simplicity sake as there are too many Naga tribes for them to remember.
DeleteQuite insightful... I'd like to add that kukish people live in all states of NE India except arunachal pradesh. Our forefathers(kukish) used to call themselves the descendants of 'Manmasi' which seemed to be even more shrouded in the mist of times as compared to the folklores which support our China origin. I'd like to ask the blogger to look a bit into this.
ReplyDeleteThis 'Manmasi' concept is already published in May 2020 titled 'Ethnic origin of Chin Part 2' in this blog.
DeleteThanks sir for your clarification. Of course, as you have assumed, the konyak and khiamniungan Naga group has a different origin theory based on folktales and folklores. For instance, we're not part of makhel(Manipur) as our dispersal (Migration route) whereas Southern and western Nagas disperse from that very location as per their historical accounts. As far as my bit knowledge is concerned than singpho are kachin offshoot of Jhingphaw in myanmar and Jingpo in Yunnan province of China wherein we considered kachin as our younger brother during ancient period especially by eastern Naga tribes of myanmar like Tangshang,Konyak,khiamniungan etc.So your assumption and research maybe acceptable from logical point of view. Moreover, As far as my tribe khiamniungan is concerned, we're somehow interrelated to Chinese bigger family in terms of cultural and customary assets and tradationally use slate houses wherein is in use even to this day. Actually, what I really want to convey is, in case if you favour to research the konyak and khiamniungan group than the practices like Tatto,logdrum,slateroofing,specific model of headgear,Iron smelting, pottery making etc all those are not common but mostly practised by eastern Naga tribes. So, I hope, such small things will somehow contribute a bit to research our eastern tribes, even if don't tour the region.
ReplyDeleteThe origin of the North Naga i.e. Konyak, Khiamniungan, Tangshang will be published in Sept 2019 because there were many requests from viewers.
DeleteThank you sir. Sir do you think the nagas could be descendants from the mongols or turkic tribes of central asia as our elders say that we migrated from there and dna testing show central asian and Mongolian ancestry
ReplyDeleteDid you read the articles in this blog carefully?
Delete1. The Mongols only came to Myanmar in 1287 AD but the Chin & South Naga came to Chindwin River basin during the mid 8th century AD which is at least 500 years earlier.
2. After the Mongols destroyed the Pagan kingdom, they returned to China to rule the Han Chinese, they didn't stay in Myanmar.
3. The physical genetics of Chin & South Naga showed that they are Central East-Asian and not North-East Asian. Mongols have whiter skin than the South Naga & Chin. Read the article below.
http://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2017/05/subgroups-of-east-asians.html
4. More reliable DNA testing show their haplogroup is mostly O3 which is the haplogroup of the Sino-Tibetan people.
Sir maybe we were mongols or central Asian in origin but later adopted and assimilated once we migrated to nagaland and Burma just like the oghuz Turks of central asia who assimilated and intermarried in the anatolian peninsula but retained their language
ReplyDelete5. Mongols prefer to live in grasslands where their horses can run freely and in cooler weather like in northern China, Mongolia, Central Asia. Why would they want to live in a hot tropical weather like Myanmar when they can go back to live in northern China? There are still millions of Mongolians living in Inner Mongolia in northern China today .
Delete6. The South Naga and Chin have never been recorded to ride on Mongol horses which is an important part of Mongol culture.
7. Supposed the Mongols conquered the Sino-Tibetan people in Naga hills and Chindwin River basin, then you all should be speaking a Mongolic language and NOT a Sino-Tibetan language.
When the Mongols ruled China for around 100 years, they didn't adopt the Han Chinese language even though the population of Han Chinese is 1000 times greater than the Mongols because the Mongols are the rulers (boss) and not the subordinates (servants).
8. The true origin of an ethnic group can only be determined by looking at all the factors such as your history of migration, your language classification, your legends, culture, physical genetics, DNA.
There is ZERO evidence that you are Mongols in terms of all the factors above.
I am a chin or mizo or kuki depending on where i live.Our ancestors used to say all of the chin kuki mizo tribe along with other tribe came from china.They used to say we were force to build a wall thats is the great wall of china.Another theory that is popular among the chin kuki mizo which we all believe came from is Chinlung or Sinlung or Khul which is cave or a rock.My personal theory is that the cave or rock we used to believe we came from is the great wall of china,since our ancestors help building the wall.The time the great wall of china was build was during the qin dynasty also sometimes known as chin dynasty.If i am not wrong one of the emperor or king who ruled the qin dynasty was know as Qinlung.I think our ancestors mix the name of the emperor name qinlung as chinlung and the great wall of china or cave which we came from was called as chinlung later on.Another intresting fact is that Lai tribe which is one of the oldest tribe in chin kuki mizo are belive to be the main root of the qin dynasty.In Mizo or chin lung is known as a rock.In our schools we used to learn that our ancestors was pushed out of chinwin river by the shans and force to move further away.Our ancestors from different tribes plant a tree which we called 'bung' and said when this branch of this tree hit the ground we will come back to this land.I personally believe we chin kuki mizo and Nagas are the same people,just slightly different because we were seperated and now live on different hills.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your opinion, most of the things that you have said are true and was already researched and published in this blog.
DeleteHowever, there is no emperor called Chin-Lung, there is a Chin (Qin) dynasty which forced people to build the Great Wall of China.
It was the Northwestern Tai that invaded the Chindwin River and pushed the Chin and South Naga to where you are today.
You can read the 'Ethnic origin of Chin' in this blog 'EastAsiaOrigin.blogspot.com'. There is also a video on 'Origin of Northwestern Tai' from 'EastAsiaOrigin' Youtube channel.
Thank you Sir, for the research. I am really impressed by your knowledge on us( sino- tibetan family). Are you Han Chinese???
ReplyDeleteSo can we say that we NAGAS belong to Chinese race and not to Mongolians ?
ReplyDelete